Key figures
| Self-filed | Attorney-filed |
|---|---|---|
Applications (2024, direct filings) | 20,158 | 49,247 |
Share of filings | 29.04% | 70.96% |
Success rate | 71.09% | 78.69% |
Failure rate | 28.9% | 21.3% |
Across 69,405 direct applications filed in 2024, attorney-filed applications succeeded 7.6 percentage points more often, and self-filed applications were about 1.4 times as likely to be unsuccessful.
General chance of registration success in Australia
Our earlier analysis of IP Australia applications covered all applications filed between 2019 and 2023 and found an average success rate of 52.52%, while the data in this article covers direct national filings only, where the combined success rate is around 76.5%, with 71.09% for self-filed applications and 78.69% for attorney-filed ones.
Although the two datasets are not directly comparable, both give a consistent general picture of IP Australia as one of the more demanding offices in our analysis: in the new data, it has the lowest combined success rate of the seven jurisdictions, and the lowest rates for both self-filed and attorney-filed applications.
Examination scope at IP Australia
IP Australia examines applications on both absolute and relative grounds. Examiners assess distinctiveness and classification and proactively search for conflicting earlier marks, as our analysis of trademark costs and examiner capacity describes. Conflicts are therefore raised at the examination stage, not left to third-party opposition.
This broad examination scope affects all applicants. Australia recorded the lowest success rates in our analysis for both self-filed (71.09%) and attorney-filed (78.69%) applications, which shows that objections at IP Australia are often substantive and difficult to overcome, whoever prepares the filing. Representation still makes a measurable difference, with a gap of 7.6 percentage points, because clearance before filing and a well-prepared response to an adverse report are the main ways to reach acceptance.
The local advantage for Australian filings
Given the scrutiny of examination and the fixed acceptance period, Australian filings benefit from counsel who work with IP Australia regularly. Through our local counsel network, Trama files directly with IP Australia, provides the required address for service and prepares each application to the office's standards from the start to minimise the risk of objections. Businesses gain local expertise without having to find and manage Australian counsel themselves, while partner firms can extend their clients' protection into Australia and continue to lead the strategy and the client relationship. Through our local counsel in 190 countries, the same brand can also be protected in other markets through a single point of contact.
With more than 35,000 trademarks registered and an overall success rate of 96.90%, partnering with Trama provides the infrastructure to support businesses and law firms in Australia and beyond.
